Showing posts with label Events. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Events. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Halal

This is my side of the story - 5 days in Tawau

14th - 18th May made me lose 2 kilos. Not a healthy way to shed some kgs. My colleague Ms. J and I was on hands and foot organizing the Halal Expo. The big deal is it was to be launched by the CM and some big guns from Johor and our State.

Day one was booth set up and we have to face digruntled shop owners whose entrance was supposedly blocked by our booths. Hello people, we bring in the crowd for you. The next day was exhibitors entering and prepping their booths and like we've anticipated ada yg sampai merajuk terkena location depan this huge pillar, can't do much but gv discount skit lah. Another butik muslimah fr KK needed some models for their fashion show so I managed to get 2 pretty ladies from the adjoining Promenade Htl for her. Last minute booth additions, requests etc but we managed to sail through it with the help of our event contractor's excellent team.

This was only my 3rd visit and the longest to Tawau but I am impressed on how cooperative and accommodating the people here were. They've have made our job in an unfamiliar venue, much more easier what with some last minute details and requests..

Oh and as a norm to everyone who visits Tawau, one must make their way to the markets for their fresh and cheap seafood, keropoks, periuk belanga, kain-kain and tudung-tudung etc..peluang yg ada kami tidak tinggalkan, walaupun terpaksa selit-selit masa. So on one of the visit there this caught my eye and tickled my funnybone.Sila baca lengkap dengan slang tempatan.

This was the emcee, he was good in entertaining the crowd. Made them laugh and participated in my quizzes. See how eager they were waiting for to win the prizes..
The Eastern Plaza, venue of my expo has just opened it's doors to the public therefore I need to create some crowd pullers to create hype and get as much visitors as I can. Since this was a Halal themed event, I called upon Kompang Nur Falah, Nasyid Nurul Amal Luasong, Ag. Aziz Gambus Bongawan and Senibudaya Tawau to perform. They were a hit! Fantastic showmanship from Kompang with their formations and energetic beats. Nasyid was harmonious and modern, 4 adik beradik yg amat talented. Ag. Aziz Gambus has the most peminat, they performed some beautiful dances and get the spectators to participate on-stage, berjoget lambak tah bisdia org2 Tawau.

In between these main shows, there were some stage product demonstrations and fashion shows. So I can safely summarize that the expo was a success, the exhibitors were happy that they made some sales and future sales. My only regret was our hard effort was not witnessed by our boss and the main committee. I didn't see any videography taken nor their official photographer taking memorable shots, i sure hope I'm wrong PLUS Ms. J and I was not even offered a ride to the airport by the main comm group who have chartered a bus eventhough we were going back on the same flight..terkilan sungguh.
The Chief Minister's visit to the booths was smooth sailing despite the expo hall being a tad too sempit for comfort. Sayalah orang yg paling nervous at that time.

In one of the food category booth. I like their publicity and promotion gimmick. Clever. They had the most visitors apart from the Lintah booth.

On the flight back to KK, I sat next to this granny..cool kan? She immediately reminded me of my late Granma coz she smelled of antique wooden furniture, just like the ones my Granma used to have.
I'm exhausted, didn't sleep and eat much. We worked from 8am - 9pm. We were given room without breakfast bcoz the rate was too expensive. My meals were mainly half-eaten coz perut sudah masuk angin and too anxious to eat. My brain won't shut down when I wanted to sleep. My mind just went on overdrive and lived on adrenaline the wholetime I was in Tawau. Begitulah gayanya saya when handling an event, tak kan aman sampailah habis and successful. This is the satisfaction that I derive from events that I do that some people might not understand, at the end of the day everyone smiles and say thank you to you. Made great friends, had a "rollercoaster" of a good time. Balik rumah conked out with a smile on my face. Puas...

Monday, February 23, 2009

Blame it on the rain..

I had a great weekend…because I get to nap in while it was pouring outside! Can you imagine the cool air, gloomy clouds and sound of the falling rain hitting your rooftop?? The best time to nap, ever! Everything in the house seems like in a sleepy mode. The chores can wait. Everybody napped. And we woke up, the rain has stopped and the grass are ever so green and still wet, the air was so fresh and I felt soooooo lazy hahaha not a good sign.

We began our weekend with a Wan Wan tom yam and fish soup breakfast on Saturday, then later in the evening brought the kids to 1B amusement centre to indulge them. He's a hearty eater..
He wants to play everything..


Sunday, I dragged everyone (which translates to us with our 3 boys) to the City Day Regatta at Kinabalu Yacht Club but we weren’t sure whether we were too late or too early. So the boys kicked some sand, took pics with the sail boats and then we went home. Little did I know my cousin took part and won (felt like hitting my forehead). Communication breakdown.
Ms. Tania Beverly William..this was her 1st competition and she WON! I wonder why the gloomy face?

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Spotted on Val's Day

Not this year hahahah..hubby just got back from outstation so instead I got this rrrrrrrrred shirt. The bouquet I ordered to be delivered from my BIL for his GF.
Our Val's day was spent wondering strolling along in Wisma Merdeka, Centre Point & Warisan Square with Benjy..just a relaxed day for us. We did enjoyed watching people with bermacam-macam ragam.
Remember those days when you were sooooo in love that you just HAVE to wear matching shirts?? So in Cinta la tu..kikiikikik not me!
Found this at Popular Bookstore..quickly hollered for hubby hahahahah
What-d-hell?? New trend is it? Fashion victim betul

Sunday, February 8, 2009

The Year of the Ox

The beginning of the new Lunar year saw me wrapped in sweaters, socks and blanket..plus two of my offsprings. Hope it will bring better health and money as the days goes by..so tak syok la holidays kena fever..can't fully enjoy the feast cause all I tasted was bitter. But anyways, here's our family celebration to share with you all..

CNY Eve dinner was held at my aunt's house in Tg. Aru. Concept is potluck not like the traditional Chinese Eve menu. Many more foodies but all were devoured before I can click, ingat perut dulu.
Ariff excited with the oranges
Some of the clan after dinner gossips..
This is wajib, steamed chicken, you bit the flesh and wrap in the salad then dip in soya sauce mixed with ginger, garlic and chilli
Kam Hiong Mangrove Crabs, my potluck contribution
Buttermilk prawns courtesy of Mum
My boys, Nabil is feverish already but control macho, didn't want to be left out with in the raucous with his young uncles
26th Jan, 2009 (1st day of CNY) our family went to stay at Nepenthes Lodge at Mt. Kinabalu National Park. It was cold and rainy the two days we were there and I was too busy running up and down chasing after the boys so not many pictures taken lah.

This pic was shot at 6.15am 27th Jan 09. Benjy couldn't sleep well because of te cold and unfamiliar place so he and hubby woke up early and got trigger happy. Beautiful clear shot of the Mountain.
Before we headed home, we attempted to take our "historical" photo at Timpohon Gate but memang cuaca tidak mengizinkan this time, raining again (it rains everytime we go snap there lah. So snap the road sign pun jadilah)
Ini gambar tiga orang demam. Only Ben and hubby is ok. I look so pale oh kan..no mood to bermekap lagi

Sunday, January 11, 2009

Out of the Office and Into the Jungle..Outward Bound Sabah

Here I go again..3rd attempted writing on the OBS Team Building Course we had recently..the two were accidentally deleted.

Left home early and all the way I was worried about leaving my children but at the same time excited..a little sense of freedom too hehehe..I felt a bit guilty of having so much fun when my kids are looking for me. Benjy didn't want me to go coz he said he will miss me. Hubby didn't want me to go coz he will be lost without me. Baby didn't want me to go coz he still needs his nenen bergerak. Nabil didn't know head nor tail heheheh..he's independant. But I think this is good for me..me time..my space.

Day 1..We were divided into 3 groups. The instructors did the dividing so no cliques, existing groupies made their own team, we all have to mingle with different people. After all this was the point. So each team was given some "gong" if we need to use it for our team performance later. The boys were so happy they got their toys.

Ni dia si Batlan..kena bully saja dia ni. He came royally and annoyingly late so the boys didn't let him get the lower bunk. Ada cerita...(byk cerita dia ni tp yg paling hot saja lah)..
He had an encounter with the "unspoken" jeng jeng jeng...typically him, he didn't participated in the camping activity and slept alone in the dorm. Earlier that evening Michael already "met" with the lady in white gliding pass his dorm, when he followed her thinking "it" was one of us she made a turn and dissappeared behind the dorm. Well he didn't waste a single second hanging around after that.
So si Batlan ni not feeling well maybe so he was sleeping and suddenly the dorm lights and fan were switched off which he dismissed as maybe the boys were fooling around. Then he heard scratches at the window and he jumped down from the top bunk and screamed angrily towards what he thought was the boys. When he waited at the doorway nothing was there but pitch black darkness..then it dawned on him. But he still stayed in the dorm. 2 of our guys saw the lady in white and I was told one Singaporean student also saw "it".

Then we went river kayaking..semua pucat nampak air. This is one commonly shared major phobia for us. Mostly do not know how to swim. So when the instructors told that we were having a compulsory capsized drill everyone's blood went cold! But after everyone managed to do it, then we proceeded to cruise the river with our double kayak..relaxing you say?? I couldn't feel my arms for a while..punya jauh they brought us upriver..Si Makcik Janisa capsized once lagi. Tapi semua puas hati because they have conquered one of their fears. See the wet and smiling faces.

This was supper..after "Nightline" we were feasted with biskut krim and self service nescafe and teh. Never had a plain biskut krim tasted so sedap. Nightline was a challenge that had us all blindfolded and walk through te jungle and bushes aided only by the sound of the instructors whistle and a rope that was tied around trees and such. No torchlight was allowed unless we were in danger or hurt. Segala semut kerengga semua merayap naik ke badan. We bumped into tree stumps, akar kayu melintang, knocked into tree branches, peluk batang pokok lah, naik turun bukit lah but at the end everyone said they had fun.

At the dining hall, no one was exempted from cleaning their own dishes, mopping the floor and wiping the tables.

Day 2..After morning drill, breakfast, dorm inspection and exercise we did the Rope Course..This is Madame Makcik Janisa our cleaning lady in the office, she's 53 yrs old. Without her silly antics and loud singing noise, it will be pretty quiet. Seen here sitting on her laurels while the rest of us were busy cleaning up the dorm to be ready for inspection. But what I respect most was that despite her age and limited strength she tried to do all the tasks / challenges. She was so happy in the river that she requested the intructors to capsize her twice! I think all the instructors were impressed and will talk about her long after we left.


Rock Climbing..this was the toughest for me. I scaled the side wall which was tougher rupanya. Begegar my arms trying to get a good grip, my palms were sweaty and I kept on slipping. It was physically hard. But we all managed. Even our Puan Hajah here made it to the top.

The Flying Fox..The first thing that came up to my mind as we were approaching this haunted looking tree was..the ladder. Punya tinggi!! When I finally reached the platform my limbs refused to move and my butt won't budge even wit my eyes shut. So the instructor had to shove me off the edge. Kecut perut syal! My heart was in my mouth.
But after the take of it was WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE............!!!! Exhilirating..now my heart will go on.....heheheh I can do this again.

The Giant Ladder..psst Fabmom, Whimsi, Shabbymom..si Batlan n Rajak made it all teh way up! This ladder has 5 giant steps. As you go higher the gap got further apart even with my arms outstretched I coulnd't reach it...(pindik la bah tu kan). I enjoyed this challenge..but fyi the whole thing is bloody wobbly.

3pm masa untuk cari kayu api for the bonfire. 4pm we collected our camping equipments and rations and set upcamp. Our rations include 1kg of frozen chicken wings, rice, salted fish, cabbage, carrots, onions, ginger, salt, cooking oil and bananas. By 5pm it rained. Most of the ladies ran helter skelter back to the dorm to save their shoes and clothes drying under the sun while I squrried to save our firewood for cooking.
We saw a snake earlier on slithering on the grass so that night the men gave up their tent for us and we moved it to the boathouse. I couldn't sleep a wink that night as I have caught a cold and the asthma that I thought was cured, hit me. It was darn cold and I shooed 3 ekor ketam that tried to creep up our tent. I remembered my late Grandma once pesan, never to sleep on a cement floor..nanti sejuknya masuk ke tulang..so true
This was our kitchen, chef was Puan Hajah. Our campsite was in the best location, next to the boat house. Ada cerita lagi..dalam kesibukan semua orang preparing dinner, one of our staff bbq-ed the ikan masin which was a jungle taboo. And almost immediately after our friend remembered this he heard a strange bird-like noise coming from the trees above him. This was about 6pm-ish. So he threw 1 piece of the salted fish into the bush and telling "it" to go away so it did he thought. Until while on his way home he heard it again near his house. And he noticed 2 bite marks on his elbow and knee which looked like fang bite already blue/purple.

Peh! We had a grand banquet that night..sayur nangka masak lemak cili api dengan ikan masin, ikan masin goreng, bbq chicken wings, fried chicken wings, tumis sayur kubis and nasi putih. Dessert we had apples & oranges that I brought from home and bananas. We used banana leaves as plates and my oh my it made the rice so fragrant and everything else extra deliscious. Lapar bah tu..semua pun jadi sedap. Nangka muda tu we found it near our campsite. Lada padi petik dari dlm hutan.
After dinner was the group performance and we didn't have the time to practise. Our group performed a short sketch and not surprisingly some forgot their lines eheheh..the other groups did group singing and after that all of us danced sumazau. si Makcik yang almost everyday melalak mengilai menyanyi dalam ofis tiba-tiba malu pulak refused to sing..until si Michael chased her around the boathouse with a kereta sorong. The Instructors were mighty amused.


Day 3...The morning after was cleaning time..the ladies were smart enough to get busy and the men had to scrub the pots spotless! hahahaha

Our last activity was called Prison Break and as the name suggest we had to carry four 4WD tyres as our "vehicle" of escape, cross over the "prison wall"
and then 6 of us had to be blinded folded while the other roll the tyres and look out for each other. I volunteered to go blind, I think it will be more interesting. Then we waded through thick stinking muddy waters towards the beach..and OMG the water was murky to the point of black. I threw my shoes and socks away after that. Then we washed ourselves in the sea, mandi manda lagi. Then the final task was to buld a raft and paddle across the river in a race. Syok juga perasaan bila dijaga oleh team mates..if in the office it felt like everyman man for himself and we don't trust each other. Here we look out for each other and the team leader was constantly shouting out caution and warnings to his team so that nobody got hurt. Whatever it was the leader yang tersadung, terlanggar, terjatuh dulu and then made sure this team mates did not go through that..so symbolic. How I wished our Bolai had the heart to be with us. Shows a lot.

PRICELESS!! Kedapatan suda ni illegal smoking..tepi longkang dekat semak dalam belukar..mana-mana pun jadi lah just for a puff of nicotine stick eheheheh..jajal kan mua si Joe but please be informed that my friend here is one of the gentlest, politest and nicest guy I ever met. Penat banget la suda si kawan ni..bukan dia sorang ja ni, ramai lagi tu di belakang sana betapuk heheheh..

We had the best fun and experience of our lives...great company (each other)...we took the challenge and test our capabilities to the limit and discovered strength that we never know we had..we grew closer and faced our fears together..the lessons each of us learned I hope will be used in our daily lives ahead and not left behind as memories at OBS Kinarut.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

End of the year..the beginning of their life..

A tad too late but nevertheless I wish them good luck..

Amir Rizal Mohd. Ridzuan & Elnye Marinie Jumat (27th Dec 2008)

Rina Fauziah Abd. Rahman & Sahlan (28th Dec 2008)


My friends from school...and they had magnificent pelamin.

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

The Green Acre..

This lovely home is beautifully located on a hill facing a clear white water river and lush jungle. The air is cool and fresh, one will feel peaceful and serene. This is where our family will gather every Christmas and every other festive holidays as it is the perfect getaway from the hustle bustle of the city and provides all the comforts of home.

I always admire my aunt's (the tuan rumah) home decorating sense. She has the eye and the touch. The gift of using delightful knick knacks to turn a plain spot into a corner that is so pleasing to the eyes and soul (chewah..betul ni..i'm not exaggerating). There is no dull spot in her home. Her theme??...is definitely authentically her own.


The kumbang here is always around this bunga..all day long buzzing from blossom to blossom..


This is the middle lawn where we use to set up camp for the kids sleepover..guests will arrive from the left hallway and passby this lawn.

Green green grass of home..

The view from the verandah..after the football field is the river. You can hear the sound of the gushing river from here. I love to dip in the cool waters..huge slippery rocks though, I haven't got the nerve to bring my boys down there yet. One sweet day I will..


Cozy open concept..all the fresh air and natural light that you can get. Plus the kids have all the space to run free.

Male model of the Year..